Hashemite Arabia
Hashemite Arabia (Arabic: العربية الهاشمية), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Arabia (Arabic: المملكة العربية الهاشمية) is a country located in the Arabian Peninsula in southwest Asia. Currently headed by 'Abd al-llah, king of Arabia and a member of the House of Hashim. Hashemite Arabia is bordered to the north by the Mashriqi Kingdom; to the west by the Red Sea; to the south by Yemen and British South Arabia; and to the east by the Persian Gulf, British Kuwait and British Qatar. History The lands known as the Hejaz were in control of the Ottoman Empire since the 16th century. In the 1860s, the Ottoman Empire was going through a period of reform. Because of this, administrative reforms were introduced in the Empire. Hejaz was reorganized as a vilayet of the Ottoman Empire in 1872 according to the Vilayet Law of 1864. This was Hejaz first appearance as a political entity in the modern era. Independence from the Ottomans In 1908, Hussein ibn Ali was appointed Emir of Mecca by Sultan Abdul Hamid II. After discovering that the Ottomans planned to remove and possibly murder him, he agreed to work with the British if they would support a wider Arab revolt and the establishment of an independent Arab kingdom — the British implied they would. After the Ottomans executed other Arab nationalist leaders in Damascus and Beirut, the Hejaz rose against the Ottomans. Sharif Hussein bin Ali proclaimed the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire, accusing the Committee of Union and Progress of violating tenets of Islam and limiting the power of the sultan-caliph. In 1916, Sharif Hussein bin Ali declared himself King of the Hejaz. Post-War Era In 1919, the Arab Revolt and the Entente were victorious. The Ottoman Empire signed the Treaty of Sèvres and which reduced the territory of the Ottomans to a rumpt state in Anatolia. The Arabs were outraged when they discovered that the British and French had no plans to support full Arab unification. This hurt the relationship between the leaders of Hejaz and the Entente, but after the establishment of the British influenced but mostly independent Hashemite Mashriqi Kingdom on the Levant, relations between the Hashemite leaders of Hejaz and the Entente improved once more. In the early 1920s, the Hashemites Kingdoms of Hejaz and Mashriq received economic and military aid from the British. Hejaz found itself in a war with the Emirs of Jabal Shammar and Najd. In 1925, the Hashemites of Hejaz defeated of both emirates, King of Hejaz Hussein bin Ali proclaimed the Hashemite Kingdom of Arabia, uniting the Arab lands between the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. Due to increased British isolation, British aid to the Hashemite Kingdoms stopped shortly after the mid-1920s. Hashemite Arabia in 1936 Although Hashemite Arabia is very stable in 1936, old rivalries and divisions are still present in the rural areas. Hashemite Arabia has a steadily growing economy. Hashemite-British relations are at a sour state; the establishment of the Hashemite Kingdom of Arabia in 1925 was found very controversial by the British, arguing that an united Hashemite Arabia would create social havoc and destabilize British possessions on the Arabian Peninsula. The Arabian dream of having an unified state has not been forgotten by the Arabian people, and it could ignite conflicts between the Hashemites and the British in the near future.Category:Countries Category:Asian countries